


A new life in green

by darkprincess64



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-06-02
Updated: 2017-10-24
Packaged: 2017-12-13 17:14:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 16,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/826781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkprincess64/pseuds/darkprincess64
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Oliver Queen has started his new life as the hood, all he needs is a new<br/>person to share it with</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. first meeting

Authors note: Hello people, taking a quick break from my other story while I decide on how to proceed with the next chapter  
Summary:   
Warning: Swearing and male/male  
Pairings: Oliver Queen/ Quentin Lance  
Disclaimers: The plot I guess that’s really about it!! What a shame.  
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\----------------- ---------------- -------------- --------------------------------- ----------------------------  
First Meeting  
Oliver Queen quickly side stepped the young mother as she pushed her pram through the crowded shopping centre, having ditched Diggle over an hour ago Oliver was looking forward to being able to spend the day without the bodyguard/sidekick watching his every move. Stopping to look at a map located in the middle of the shopping centre Oliver glanced over at it assessing his location before continuing in the same direction he had been walking in. The playboy smirked as he spotted the sign pointing in the direction of the movie theatre.

His sudden arrival back to the civilised world had resulted in Thea taking it upon herself to welcome him back by keeping him updated with all the best movies he had missed in his 5 years on the island, this resulted in many days and late nights watching the movies Thea had deemed most important and whilst he would gladly never watch the twilight series again (Tommy was right when he said he was better off not knowing), the James Bond movies had caught his interest and when the latest instalment had been released he had decided to go.

The decision to go on his own was made as soon as he had found out the movie was showing, Thea was busy with school or at least he hoped she was, Tommy was always good to hang out with but Oliver didn’t feel like attracting a big crowd or being the centre of attention when all he wanted to do was enjoy the movie. Finally there was Laurel, Oliver hadn’t been lying when he told Laurel that all he dreamed about was her and how she had kept him going but seeing her again but in reality life after spending so much time on that island his feelings for her were not the same as they had once been.

Shaking that thought from his head Oliver made his way up the stairs and joined the small queue of people who were lining up to get their tickets. Oliver made his way to the back of the queue glancing around at the posters before his eyes fell on the man standing in front of him. A smirk made its way across his face as he recognised the man standing in front of him, dressed neatly in a pair of jeans and a dark green shirt.

“Day off detective” Oliver asked announcing his presence causing the older man to startle and to turn around

“Yes and it was going rather well up until this point” The detective answered back before turning and moving forward when the girl behind the counter called him

“Hello how can I help you?” She chimed happily smiling up at the detective

“Just one adult to Skyfall” Detective Lance answered reaching into his back pocket to retrieve his wallet. Without hesitation Oliver stepped forward moving to stand behind the other man smiling down at the girl when she looked at him in surprise.

“Make that two adults to Skyfall” he cut in holding out a $50 note.

“What are you doing?” the detective questioned, looking just as surprised as the girl behind the counter.

“Well since we are both here to see the same movie, we may as well see it together.”Oliver smiled waving the $50 at the girl who quickly took the money and began typing on her computer.

 

“What makes you think I want to see the movie with you Queen?” Lance snapped back crossing his arms across his chest glaring at the playboy.

“Well I am paying for the tickets and I will even buy you popcorn” Oliver chuckled winking at the girl across the counter who blushed as she handed over the tickets.

“You are in cinema 3, and your movie starts in 10 minutes” She muttered quietly. 

“Thanks enjoy the rest of your day” Oliver waved as Lance rolled his eyes.

“Let’s go detective” Oliver added walking towards the candy bar. 

“Wait Queen I didn’t say I was going to watch the movie with you” Lance continued moving to catch up with the younger man.

“It’s Oliver and I have already payed for the tickets... so what would you like on your popcorn” Oliver added smiling over at the disgruntled detective.  
“I never asked you to pay for the tickets, this is supposed to be my day off” Lance muttered as they approached the Candy Bar.  
“Hi and welcome to the Candy Bar, how can I help you today?” a dark hair youth asked smiling over at them.  
“I will have large butter popcorn and a large coca-cola...and he will have....”.  
“I will just have a bag of mixed lollies and a bottle of water” Lance answered with a sigh.  
“That will be $23.50” the cashier smiled as Oliver handed him another $50.   
“And here is your change enjoy your movie” the youth continued.   
“Shall we” Oliver nudged the detective before making his way over to the theatre he smiled as he heard the detective mutter something under his breath before following him. Silently the two men made their way into cinema 3 and moved so that they were at the back of the theatre before taking their seats.  
“Why are you doing this?” Lance questioned turning his head slightly to stare at the playboy.  
“I want to prove to you that I am not a bad person, that I am not the same arrogant, selfish, pig-headed playboy I was before the island...I know you hate me and you have every reason to but I want to prove to you that I am a good person not some murdering vigilante...is that too much to ask detective?” Oliver questioned in a soft voice making sure that only Lance heard him not everyone else around them, the silence stretched on for a few moments before the detective sighed.  
“It’s Quentin” was his only reply as the cinema turned black.  
\-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- ------  
“So did you want to grab some lunch?” Oliver questioned as the two men exited the cinema complex heading back into the main shopping centre.   
“You just ate an entire large popcorn not to mention half of my lollies and a large Coke and you are still hungry?” Quentin asked looking amused.   
“Well I have 5 years of popcorn, sweets and well just food in general to make up for so yeah I am still hungry.” Oliver smiled over at the other man to which his response was a snort.  
“Fine I know a nice cafe around here that does a good burger” Quentin replied who after motioning to Oliver to follow turned and walked in the other direction. The two made their way a short distance before entering a Cafe, Quentin waved at one of the waitresses before moving towards one of the booths located on the far end of the restaurant.  
“Come here often?” Oliver smiled as the waitress waved back.  
“They do good food and coffee plus it’s close to the precinct” Quentin replied taking a seat and placing his phone and wallet on the table next to him. Oliver took the opposite seat placing his own phone and wallet on the table out of the way.  
“Good afternoon Quentin, what can I get for you today?” A middle aged woman asked ass he stopped in front of the booth.  
“Hey Mags, I’ll just have a cheese burger and a coffee.” Mags nodded as she scribbled down the order.  
“And you” she asked turning to Oliver.  
“I’ll have a burger with the lot and a coke” Oliver responded as Mags nodded.   
“Won’t be long guys” She chimed before turning on her heals and walking off. A loud buzzing alerted both men to the playboy’s phone as it moved across the table, frowning Oliver picked it up glancing at the screen.  
“Sorry I need to take this” He stated as he lifted the phone to his ear.  
“Hello”.  
“Where ever you happen to be right now you need to get to the hospital, our latest mark is preparing to leave” Diggle’s voice echoed through the phone.  
“Ok give me a couple of minutes and I will be right there” Oliver replied hanging up before he could get a response.   
“I’m sorry I have to go” Oliver smiled apologetically over at Quentin.  
“That’s fine” the other man replied before raising an eyebrow when Oliver failed to make a move.  
“Did you want to...um have dinner some time with me?” Oliver asked suddenly feeling nervous.   
“Dinner as in a....” Quentin paused not knowing how to continue with that sentence.  
“Date...yeah look here is my number” Oliver said as he hesitantly reached over and grabbed Quentin’s phone before flipping it open and saving his number. “Could you at least think about it...my phone’s always on” He continued placing the older man’s phone back on the table before fishing another $50 out of his wallet. “Here this is for the food...Cya later” he finished before walking out of the cafe.  
“Hey Quentin where did your friend go?” Mags spoke up as she arrived at the table with the burgers and drinks.  
“He had to leave, and could you bring me a beer please I think I need it.”  
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	2. Chapter 2

Author’s note: Hello people, taking a quick break from my other story while I decide on how to proceed with the next chapter  
Summary:   
Warning: Swearing and male/male  
Pairings: Oliver Queen/ Quentin Lance  
Disclaimers: The plot I guess that’s really about it!! What a shame.  
Would like to make a big thank-you to wtchcool who is my brilliant beta   
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^  
\----------------- ---------------- -------------- --------------------------------- ----------------------------  
First Date  
Detective Quentin Lance prided himself on his ability to remain cool, calm and collected. His many years in the police force had proven that he was able to think with a cool head in situations which would have left others running for the hills. This situation though was something that no amount of training could have prepared the older detective for as he found himself pacing up and down his office trying to figure out what his next move was.

“You know if you keep this up you are going to wear a hole in the carpet.” Hilton spoke up from the doorway a cup of coffee in each hand. Quentin sighed as he reached out to take one of the coffees from the other detective before dropping into his seat. 

“Anything you want to talk about?” The other detective continued moving towards his own desk, where he turned on his computer.

“You promise not to tell anyone.” Quentin started before taking a large gulp of the hot coffee.

“Scout’s honour.” Hilton replied giving the other detective a mock salute.

“I have been asked out on a date.” the man replied dropping his head into his hands in frustration.

“Ok I fail to see how that’s a bad thing.” Hilton chuckled as he leaned back into his chair with his arms crossed over his chest.

“I was asked out by Oliver Queen.” the silence that followed caused the distraught detective to look over at his colleague who was currently doing a great impersonation of a fish.

“Oliver Queen as in the guy you arrested for being ‘the hood’”. Hilton managed to say keeping up his impersonation.

“Yeah that would be him.” Lance replied picking up his coffee and taking another sip.  
“What did you say?” Hilton asked getting up from his seat and moving to sit on the side of Quentin’s desk.  
“Nothing I was in shock that he asked in the first place.” Lance answered placing his coffee cup none too gentle on the desk.  
“Ok explain how this happened in the first place.” the other detective demanded a smile slowly edging up his features.  
“You know how I told you I was going to see Skyfall?” Lance paused as he waited for the other detective to nod before continuing. “I was in line and Queen happened to be behind me, he then got the bright idea that we should see the movie together and paid for both tickets as well as snacks...After the movie we went to get lunch but before we could eat he got called away and before he left he asked me out and typed his number into my phone...What are you smiling at?”  
“Nothing it’s just by the sound of it you have already been on your first date. I mean isn’t the first date typically dinner and a movie?” Hilton laughed the smile now covering his face.  
“You’re not helping.” Lance muttered sinking further into his chair.  
“Ok, ok, you’re right I’m sorry...So what are you going to do?”  
“I don’t know that’s why I am asking you. I mean there are so many cons weighing against the idea of us going out.” Quentin sighed getting up from his seat and began pacing up and down the office again.  
“Such as.” the other detective prompted moving around to follow the other’s movements.  
“One: he is the same age as Laurel, Two: he dated Laurel, Three: he slept with Laurel and Sarah, Four: it’s because of him that Sarah is dead and Five: Laurel still likes him.” Quentin commented counting off on his fingers as he went.  
“Ok first of all Quentin it’s not Queen’s fault Sarah died- that storm and that accident was just that; an accident. You couldn’t have predicted it or stopped it...It’s a miracle Queen himself survived it for as long as he did, and second I thought Laurel was dating his friend...eh what’s-his-name.” Hilton pointed out.  
“Tommy... and even if i overlooked that detail with Sarah he is still half my age and dated both my daughters.” Quentin sighed as he picked up his coffee and downed the rest in a single gulp.  
“Well regardless of that fact you clearly like him otherwise you wouldn’t be putting yourself through all of this.” Hilton replied chuckling at the shocked look on Quentin’s face. His only response was a loud groan before Quentin dropped back into his seat and looked displeased at the sight of his now empty coffee cup.  
“Ok, well answer me this honestly did you enjoy spending time with him yesterday?”  
“I suppose... ok yes.” Quentin responded catching the other detective’s raised eyebrow.  
“Ok and do you find him attractive?” Hilton asked smirking as he watched the other detective slowly blush.  
“I will take that as a yes... I say go for it.” Not waiting for a response Hilton got up and moved back to his own desk.  
“Yeah...you think I should?”  
“Sure I mean it’s a date- it is either going to end in a second date or end right then and there.”   
“What about Laurel?” Quentin questioned pulling his phone out of his pocket.  
“Again, it’s a first date. It might not go any further and if it does you can cross the bridge when you get there.” Sighing again Quentin flipped open his phone and scrolled through the contacts before reaching Oliver’s.  
“I feel like a teenager.” he muttered before pressing the call button and moving the phone to his ear rolling his eyes and Hilton gave him a thumbs up.   
“Hello Oliver here.” the cheerful voice answered.  
“H...Hey Oliver; it’s Quentin,” Quentin spoke up quickly moving around in his swivel chair to avoid the smug look on his partner’s face.  
“Quentin, wow it’s good to hear from you!...So um have you given any thought to my question about having dinner with me?” Oliver questioned a hint of nervousness creeping into his voice.  
“Yeah, I have and I would like to have dinner with you,” Quentin spoke up feeling more confident knowing the other man was just as nervous as he was.  
“Really? That’s great... I mean um...how about tomorrow night?”  
“Tomorrow night would be great.” Quentin spoke before wincing when he heard his partner whooping in the background.   
“Ok how about I pick you up after work?...Um what time do you finish?”  
“I will be finished at 7.”  
“Great. So I will pick you up at 7 outside the precinct?”  
“Ok; I will see you then.” Quentin smiled to himself as relief washed over him.  
“Yeah...see you tomorrow.” Queen answered before hanging up. ‘Oliver’ Quentin reminded himself shaking his head. They were going on a date; he needed to refer to the man by his first name.

“So what are you going to wear?” Hilton spoke up tapping his pen against his coffee cup.

\--------- ---------- -------------- -------------- ---------- ---------- ----------   
“So hot date tonight?” Thea chuckled from the doorway of Oliver’s room as the man in question tried on different suit jackets.   
“Yeah...first date I want to make a good impression,” Oliver added before frowning and throwing another suit jacket on the bed.  
“Must be really important, normally you don’t go to this much effort when picking out your clothes for a date,” Thea continued moving forward and dropped on her brother’s bed, smirking as her brother shifted uncomfortably.  
“Well, are you going to just lie there or are you going to help me?” Oliver sighed knowing she wasn’t going to leave anytime soon.  
“Depends; are you going to tell me who you are going to so much effort to impress?” Thea replied moving a few of the jackets around.  
“Who is he trying to impress?” a voice echoed from the doorway; both siblings turned to watch as their mother entered the room.  
“Ollie has a first date...and he is nervous.” Thea smirked, ignoring her brother’s glare.  
“Oh you don’t say...Well she must be important then,” Moira continued walking into the room and sat next to her daughter on the bed.  
“If you are both going to sit there, can you at least help me pick out something to wear?” Oliver sighed, walking back into his walk in robe.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Oliver Queen stole a quick glance at the passenger side mirror letting out a deep breath as he leaned back against his Lamborghini his eyes scanning the front door of the precinct waiting for Quentin to appear. Glancing at his watch Oliver took a deep breath and slowly let it out ‘Made it with 5 minutes to spare’ he chuckled remembering his futile escape attempts from his mother and sister as they played twenty questions trying to find out just who exactly he was going out with. The game had ended when Walter reminded his mother that they had a dinner reservation and she should probably start getting ready.   
A loud giggle to his right caused his head to snap in the direction and he watched as two young female cops walked towards him one actually winking at him as they passed. Oliver smiled as he shook his head, before the island he would have gladly chased after the women trying to bed not just one, but if possible both women possible at the same time. Now Oliver didn’t want a quick fuck he didn’t want a mindless relationship which only lasted a few hours. He wanted stability, something that lasted, someone he could wake up to and be happy with.  
“Mr Queen.” a deep voice sounded breaking Oliver from his daydream and he turned to face Quentin and his partner who appeared to be beaming.  
“Detective Hilton.” Oliver offered his hand a large smile on his face.  
“Lucas,” the other detective answered, taking the younger man’s hand in a tight handshake.  
“Then I insist you call me Oliver,” Oliver answered returning the tight grip with one of his own. Quentin groaned quietly as he watched the two men interact, both trying to top the other. Smirking, Lucas released his grip and moved to clap Quentin on the shoulder.  
“Now remember we both need to be in court at 9am sharp, so no staying out too late and remember to behave yourself!” Lucas chimed acting like a smug parent. With one final clap on the shoulder, Lucas winked at Quentin and after one final handshake with Oliver turned on his heels and walked away.  
Oliver smirked as he heard Quentin mutter something about making a shooting look like an accident, before he placed a hand on Quentin’s lower back causing the older man to start.  
“Shall we?” he continued admiring the growing blush on the older man’s face.

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	3. Chapter 3

Warning: Swearing and male/male

Pairings: Oliver Queen/ Quentin Lance

Disclaimers: The plot I guess that's really about it!! What a shame.

Would like to make a big thank-you to wtchcool who is my brilliant beta!   
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Stepping out of the Lamborghini, Quentin glanced up at the restaurant; Maze was the newest up and coming restaurant known for its fantastic food and its equally exuberant prices—or at least that's what Laurel had told him.

A young valet dressed in an expensive looking suit walked over, smiling brightly over at Oliver before shifting his attention to Quentin and giving him the once over, before turning his attention back to the billionaire. Handing over the car keys to the valet, Oliver walked over to Quentin, looking nervous.

"Too much?" Oliver muttered, looking down at his feet, his hands grasped tightly together; the older man's heart skipped a beat at how much effort the younger man was putting into the evening.

"It's great," Quentin smiled, placing a hand over Oliver's own, his heart giving another tug as the other man's face lit up. Oliver turned one of his hands over, giving Quentin's own a squeeze before removing it and placing it back on the older man's lower back, guiding him towards the entrance.

Stepping into the restaurant Quentin let out a breath he didn't realise he was holding as Oliver waved at the young maître d', who immediately ushered them to a quiet table in the back of the restaurant. Quentin tried to suppress a blush as Oliver pulled out his chair, grinning at him in a way that made him weak in the knees.  
\--------------à---------------à----------------à----------------à--------------à------------à------------à--------

As nervous as he was Quentin was both presently surprised and relieved to find that conversation flowed freely between the two; from the moment that they sat down there was a type of comfort between them that he hadn't felt in a long time, something he hadn't realised he had missed for so long.

"Do you drink wine?" Oliver questioned, looking carefully at the wine list before lifting his head and looking at Quentin.

"Yeah... red preferably," Quentin replied, glancing down at his menu before mentally wincing when he noticed that the prices of the meals and drinks were absent.

'Properly better that I don't know... I doubt a detective's salary would get me very far here.'

"Good evening, my name is Richard and I will be your server for this evening. Would you like to order some drinks to start off with?" a young man dressed in yet another expensive suit asked, once again focusing all his attention on Oliver—not that Quentin was complaining.

"Sure, we will have a bottle of whatever Merlot you recommend," Oliver chimed, looking up at the waiter with a charming smile.

"Excellent choice sir... I will give you both a couple of minutes to decide on your meal," Richard replied, smiling back before scurrying off to properly locate the most expensive bottle of Merlot in the venue.

"You do realise he is going to find the most expensive bottle he can?" he asked, looking up briefly from his menu.

"You're probably right... Just be glad we didn't ask for Champagne," Oliver smiled briefly before Richard returned with the wine and two glasses.

"Have you both decided what you would like to eat?" Richard smiled, glancing between the two men before settling on Quentin when Oliver motioned him to go first.

"Oh, I will have the Filet Mignon... medium rare please."

"Good choice... and for you sir?"

"The Coq au Vin please."

"Very good... those meals will be out shortly."

Quentin relaxed into his seat as he took a sip of wine before setting it down and placed his hand on the table next to it. Oliver slowly reached forward, placing his hand close enough so that he was able to rub his index finger over Quentin's own. The older man blushed in response before hesitantly returning the gesture as the conversation picked up.

By the time the food had been delivered Oliver's hand was completely covering his own and Quentin had completely forgotten they were in public. The two settled quickly and soon the rest of the room was forgotten once again.

"Oliver?" a startled voice questioned, causing both men to jump and turn; Quentin felt his stomach drop as Moira Queen stared down at him, an amused Walter looking over her shoulder.

"Oliver, I thought you were on a date?" Moira questioned, moving to focus on her son.

"I am on a date," Oliver answered, sounding far calmer than he looked. Moira took a moment to glance from her son then to Quentin then back to her son before her eyes widened and she let out a soft 'Oh.'

"Quentin," Walter started stepping around his wife with his hand out stretched. Rising to meet the other man, Quentin grasped his hand in a friendly gesture.

"Walter, how are you?" 

"Doing well and yourself?"

"Can't complain."

Smiling over at Oliver, Walter placed his hands on Moira's shoulders before gently steering her away from the table.

"Come on dear; let's leave them alone... Have a good night you two," he called back over his shoulder as they walked to their table.

After taking his seat, Quentin was greeted with a sheepish look from the younger man; smiling softly, he reached over and placed his hand on top of the other's letting him know that everything was ok before both returned to their meals.  
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"Thanks for not freaking out before," Oliver said as they pulled up outside the precinct. Chuckling, Quentin turned to face the other. With the exception of being busted by the younger's parents the rest of the night had gone great, so well in fact that they were the last ones to leave the restaurant and when they did finally leave it was well after midnight.

"It's fine, Oliver... I had a really good time." 

"I had a great time, too...Would you...um did you want to do this again?" Oliver asked, his voice just above a whisper.

"Yeah, I would," Quentin returned in the same tone of voice, moving closer to the other. Taking the initiative, Oliver leant forward and pressed their lips together in a gentle kiss. Closing his eyes, Quentin returned the kiss, marvelling at just how soft the other's lips actually were. Pulling apart, Quentin opened the door before turning back.

"Night," he whispered.

"Good night," Oliver smiled back as Quentin climbed out of the car and made his way into the precinct.  
\---------à------------à-----------à-------------à-----------à-----------à----------à----------à-----------à-------à

 

Oliver closed the front door quietly, a huge grin spread across his face as he walked towards the staircase; taking the stairs two at a time the young man hummed to himself before pausing at the top of the stairs. Sighing, Oliver took a deep breath before entering his room, knowing that his mother would be in there waiting for him.

"What were you doing tonight?" Moria questioned, getting up from his bed.

"I told you mum... I was on a date," Oliver sighed, entering his room and kicking off his shoes.

"With Detective Lance?"

"His name is Quentin and yes we were on a date," Oliver responded, taking a seat on his bed as his mother paced the room.

"Did I hear you right?" Thea spoke up, appearing in the doorway. "You went on a date with Detective Lance... The same Detective Lance who accused you of being that green hood guy? ... The same Detective Lance who is the father of both Laurel and Sarah?"

"Yes, that Detective Lance," Oliver sighed, not liking his chances of getting out of this conversation now that it was two against one.

"How did it happen?" Thea pushed, looking more amused by the second.

"Long story short—we were seeing the same movie the other day and I insisted we see it together, afterwards we went to lunch, which got interrupted by Diggle, so I asked him if he would like to have dinner. He agreed and that's where we were tonight," Oliver stated, eyes moving from the shocked look on his mother's face to the smirk on his sister's face. 

"So how did the date go?" Thea asked, taking a seat on the bed next to her brother.

"It went well; he even agreed to go out again on another date."

"Did you kiss?" Thea beamed, ignoring the surprised noise their mother made.

"A good night kiss, yes," Oliver squirmed under her gaze.

"ENOUGH!" Moira snapped, grabbing both of her children's attention. Taking a deep breath, Moira pinched the bridge of her nose before dropping her hand and trying again.

"Ok, so this is not what I had in mind when I told you that you needed to date someone who was older and more responsible than the other floozies you have been hanging around with...I have one question and I want you to answer me truthfully... Are you going to take this relationship seriously or am I going to have to visit you in the hospital when he shoots you?"

"I am going to take this seriously... I really want this to work and after tonight, I think it will work," Oliver responded being more truthful with his mother than he had been in a long time.

"Ok then, well if you two are going to be a couple and in a serious relationship, then you are going to do this right. I want you to invite him over for dinner one night next week so we can all get to know each other. Now does Laurel know?"

"No, not yet; I think we were both going to see how tonight went first before we told anyone," Oliver replied, stunned at just how well his mother was taking this.

"Probably wise and I am sure both you and Det...Quentin want to keep this from the public until you are both ready so I would try to tell as few people as possible," she continued, glaring at Thea, who held her hands up defensively.

"Right, so now that that is settled I am going to bed...Make sure to send flowers tomorrow," Moira added as an afterthought as she left the room.

"Wow," Thea laughed. "I wasn't expecting that... So tell me about this kiss?"   
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	4. Chapter 4

Author's note: Hello people, taking a quick break from my other story while I decide on how to proceed with the next chapter  
Summary:  
Warning: Swearing and male/male  
Pairings: Oliver Queen/ Quentin Lance  
Disclaimers: The plot I guess that's really about it!! What a shame.  
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^   
\----------------- ---------------- -------------- --------------------------------- ----------------------------  
Tommy Merlyn was a lot of things: he was good looking (if he did say so himself), smart, talented and rich- well not so rich anymore since his father had cut him off- but he had a managing job at Oliver's nightclub Verdant so that had to count for something, he had a hot girlfriend and had great friends… Life was perfect, well almost perfect. His best friend was currently unattached and after 5 years trapped on an island it was his duty as the best friend to hook his friend up with a woman or at the very least get him laid; smiling to himself, Tommy began to put his plan together.  
\-----------à-------------à--------------à------------à--------------à--------------à------------à------------------à  
Detective Lance grumbled to himself as he walked out of the court room. He had been in such a good mood this morning- something Lucas had pointed out several times during the car trip- so good that he hadn't even minded having to go to court.

That had been 5 hours ago, which was 4 hours longer than it should have been since they were only supposed to be there to give their account of the crime scene. That had snowballed when the defendant's young brother had taken the stand and confessed to killing the neighbour instead—to which the older brother's reaction was to declare that it was the brother and he had been innocent the whole time—even though the younger of the two had been out of the country at the time of the murder.

"I should have shot the bastard when I had the chance," Lucas muttered darkly as they retrieved the guns from security.

"Too much paper work involved…Wanna grab a coffee?" Quentin replied, not waiting for a response before heading over to a street vender.

"So are you going to tell me how your date went last night?" Lucas drawled out, winking at the young blond behind the counter.

"You have been dying to ask me that all morning haven't you?"

"Well I am currently not getting any, so I have decided that I am going to live vicariously through you instead."

"Yes because that's not creepy at all," Quentin raised an eyebrow as he collected and paid for both coffees.

"Well you still haven't answered my question," Lucas pushed.

"It went well… really well; we are going out again," Quentin responded, eyeing his partner as they hopped into the car.

"Anything exciting happen?"

"Well, we did get busted by his parents at the restaurant," Quentin managed to say before his partner burst into hysterical laughter.  
\-----------------------------  
"It's really not that funny…I felt like I was 16 again," Quentin growled as he stalked through the precinct 20 minutes later.

"Ah yes, the age where the girl's or in your case boy's parents could instill the wrath of god into a person, ironically something you would have done to Oliver on numerous occasions."

"I use to threaten him with a tazer if the bedroom door ever closed," the detective sighed as he began to walk to his desk.

"Is it just me or do people keep smiling at you…you and Oliver didn't put on a show last night did you?"

"No, the windows were tinted and….." Quentin broke off blushing at his words, ignoring the smug look in the other man's face as he walked quickly over to his desk, only stopping when he caught sight of the bouquet of flowers that were perched there.

"You must be very special to someone," Detective Murphy spoke up as she appeared next to Quentin. The young woman must have seen the confusion on his face as she smiled and started pointing at the different flowers.

"The Tulips, which are the orange ones, represent a declaration of Love, the violets represent faithfulness, the white Camellia represents admiration and perfection, the Daisies represent Loyalty and the Forget-Me-Not represents true love." Quentin opened his mouth to respond before closing it. He continued to stare at the flowers in front of him; his heart felt as if it was going to leap out of his body and he was 100% certain that his face was bright red. Movement to his right alerted him that Murphy had vanished and a smug looking Hilton had taken her place.

"One word and not even a room full of cops will be able to protect you," Quentin snarled.

"I was just going to say that it's sweet," Hilton held his hands up defensively. "To me this means that he wants to take it seriously; he's not just looking for a fling," the man continued, taking his seat at the adjoining desk. Taking one last glance at the flowers, Quentin sat down, pulling the latest case files from the growing in-tray and flipping open his phone.  
\-------------à------------à--------------à----------------à----------------à-------------à-----------à------------  
"I need you to confirm something for me," Diggle spoke up, watching as Oliver sat at his work bench repairing the latest damage to his quiver. When the only response he got was a bored hmm, the older man rolled his eyes before continuing.  
"I was talking to your sister this morning." A quick flicker of eye contact was his response.

"She said that you had a date last night… with Detective Lance… When were you going to tell me?"

"Oh I didn't realise I needed your permission to go on a date," Oliver replied, not looking up from his work.

"You don't, but considering just who you went out with, I think you should have told me," Diggle frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. Sighing, Oliver placed the quiver on the bench before turning in his seat to face his friend.

"Fine, last night I went on a date with Quentin Lance. I asked him out; he said yes; we went and had dinner at Maze, where we got busted by mum and Walter. Afterward he agreed to go out again; we kissed and this morning I sent him flowers… So, I guess you are all caught up now," Oliver finished, turning his attention to some new arrows.

"Another date? Oliver, have you thought this through? I mean this is the guy whose job it is to hunt you down and arrest you. What's going to happen when you either have to leave a date early or cancel one? 'Oh sorry love, I have to cancel our plans; by the way if you could not shoot me tonight that would be great'?" Diggle argued, getting to his feet.

"He knows Diggle; right from the start he knew it was me, even after you took my place whilst I was under house arrest. I don't even think I had him fooled for a moment, yet he still not only agreed to go out with me once, but agreed to a second date. What does that tell you?"

"That you're both nuts," Diggle ran his hand over his face, pausing when Oliver's phone beeped. The young man placed the arrow he was holding on its stand before reaching for his phone, a large smile consuming his face as he read.

"He liked the flowers I sent him," Oliver beamed as he typed a quick message back.

"Man you have it bad," Diggle chuckled as he walked back over to his own desk.  
\--------------------à--------------à-------------à-------------à---------------à------------à-----------à  
Oliver had barely walked through the front door when he was met by both Tommy and Laurel, who were standing in the foyer taking to Thea.

"Hey guys, what brings you to the neighbourhood?" Oliver smiled, dropping his keys on the foyer table.

"A party in your honour," Tommy explained as he walked over to embrace his friend.

"What kind of party?" Oliver replied, returning the embrace.

"The kind where we invite a lot of hot young women in the hope that you will fall for one and get a girlfriend or at least get laid," Tommy continued, moving so that he was standing in front of his friend.

"Umm well you see…"

"It will be great, just what you need! I mean after 5 years stuck on an island with only your hand to keep you company, you must be dying for a piece of the action. Anyway, I have it all planned, location and everything; it will be this Saturday night starting from 8. We have the best DJ in town, as well as the hottest ladies… Thea, you are invited too; if we are going to be setting up your brother you may as well get to have your say… So what do you think?" Tommy finished, positively beaming.

"Ok Tommy, it's not like I don't appreciate what you are doing, but I am not looking to hook up with a young hot woman at the moment. I recently got into dating and it's going well," Oliver stated, silently wishing that no questions were asked.

"Ollie, if you had a girl on the scene we would know about it. I know you're nervous about getting back out there, but this will do you wonders. Now I am not taking no for an answer," Tommy finished, looking proud of himself.

"Fine," Oliver sighed, his eyes meeting Thea as she gave him a sympathetic smile, before looking back over to his best friend.

"Excellent! So we are going to Amnesia, which I should point out will be one of your main competitors when the club opens, so this is as good a reason as any to scope out what the others are doing."  
"Sounds good," Oliver made a note to call Quentin once Tommy and Laurel left.

"So what's for dinner tonight?" Tommy continued, clapping his hands together to signal the arrival of a new topic.

"Beef Stroganoff," Thea piped up, smiling over at her brother, who gave her an exhausted look. It wasn't uncommon for Tommy to invite himself over for dinner; really it was his mother's fault. She had once told him that he was welcome any time, all he had to do was turn up.

"Fantastic, your chef makes the best Beef Stroganoff," Tommy continued. Shaking his head, Oliver turned to Laurel, who was laughing at her boyfriend.

"Will you be staying for dinner, too?"

"No, as nice as your food is here, dad's making a Lasagne and that tops everything," Laurel smiled gently at him.

"Your dad's a good cook?" Thea questioned, not taking her eyes off her brother.

"My dad's a great cook; unfortunately for me, it's not a skill I managed to pick up." Oliver nodded, silently remembering the few nights Laurel had insisted that she cook for them, including the one memorable time where they had both spent the night hugging the toilet.

"Anyway, I should be heading over now," Laurel noted as she glanced down at her watch. She smiled sweetly at Oliver as she walked over to Tommy to kiss him goodbye.

"Walk me to my car," she turned to look Oliver in the eye.

"Sure," Oliver replied, following his ex out the door.

"Tommy means well," Laurel started after the front door was closed, "and I think he is right, you should be getting back out there, but at the same time you should be careful just who you decide to sleep with... I don't want you to get hurt."

"I will be fine; I promise," Oliver forced a smile back as he recognised the look in Laurel's eyes; his suspicions were proved correct when she leant forward to kiss him. Shifting quickly, Oliver turned his head causing her lips to brush up against his cheek, before she pulled away, giving him a disappointed look.

"Have a nice dinner with your dad," Oliver broke the silence, taking a step back.

"Thanks, I will," Laurel muttered, giving him one last look before she climbed into her car. Oliver let out a breath he didn't realise he was holding as he watched her drive away.

"Fuck."  
\-------------à------------à----------à-------------à--------------à---------------à------------à----------à  
It was well after midnight by the time Tommy left and Oliver was able to collapse onto his bed; he sighed as he stretched out. Dinner had been an interesting affair with Tommy telling his family all about his plans for Saturday night- both the plans to hook Oliver up and the ones to scope out the competition- Oliver had spent the remainder of dinner fending off stares from his mother and Thea as well as the occasional raised eyebrow from Walter. Flopping down on his bed, Oliver stared at the ceiling for a moment before picking up his phone.

Is it too late to ask you how your day was? Dropping his phone on his stomach, he placed his hands behind his head and closed his eyes, opening them a moment later when his stomach vibrated.

Nope just finishing off some paperwork so far have finished 3 reports out of 5. Oliver smiled at the screen before pushing the call button.

"Busy day at the office then?" Oliver chimed once Quentin picked up; a loud snort followed his question.

"Hardly, court ran 4 hours longer than it should have and I wasn't able to catch up with all my work before I had to come home."

"I heard; how was dinner? Apparently your lasagne is amazing."

"So I have been told; dinner was good... You will have to come over one night so I can make it for you," Quentin added tiredly.

"Sounds like a plan...I want to ask a question... What are you doing on Friday night?"

"Should be finished with work by 6 p.m. unless a certain someone decides that he needs to go running through Sherwood Forest, why do you ask?"

"Dinner at my place," Oliver replied after a snort of his own. "Mum took the whole date very well and wants you to come over... most likely to interrogate you."  
"Sounds fun... sure, dinner sounds great; what time?"

"I will double check and text you tomorrow... There was something else I needed to talk to you about."

"You mean the party, Laurel filled me in."

"Quinn, you need to know that I wouldn't... I told Tommy not to, but he is insisting."

"Oliver, calm down; I trust you ok? Laurel mentioned that you tried to stop it," Quentin sighed, rubbing his eyes.

"Thanks...I'm sorry; I realise I am keeping you up."

"It's fine; I have already had three cups of tea; one more won't kill me," Quentin chuckled.

"I will let you finish your paper work. Good night Quentin."

"Good night Oliver," Quentin whispered as he hung up. Oliver smiled at his phone as he settled back against his pillow and closed his eyes.

****************** ************* ***************** ***********


	5. Chapter 5

Author's note: Hello people, taking a quick break from my other story while I decide on how to proceed with the next chapter  
Warning: Swearing and male/male  
Pairings: Oliver Queen/ Quentin Lance  
Disclaimers: The plot I guess that's really about it… What a shame.  
Thanks once again to Wtchcool for all the hard work   
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^   
\----------------- ---------------- -------------- --------------------------------- ----------------------------  
Oliver sighed as he triple checked his appearance in the bathroom mirror, turning his head at different angles to ensure that he had given himself a clean shave all over. Happy with his appearance, he placed the razor back on the stand and walked back into his bedroom glancing at his alarm clock. Oliver let out a groan as he flopped face down onto his bed. Another glance at the alarm clock confirmed that it was still 4 p.m. and Quentin wasn't due over for another 3 hours.

Oliver pushed his face into the pillow, a large smile gracing his face as he thought back on the past week; he and Quentin had spoken on the phone every day, with the exception of Wednesday when Oliver had surprised Quentin after work to take him out to dinner. It continued to surprise him just how well things were going between the two men, from the first date they continuously learnt things about each other; both willingly offering up the information.

Oliver had been surprised to learn that Quentin had been born in Wellington, Shropshire, England to an English father and a German mother. He had spent his childhood traveling between the two countries—and as a result spoke fluent German; when he was 15, his father had gotten a contract with an American shipping company and they had moved and settled in Starling City. He had met Dinah in his last year of high school and the two had gotten married a year later, after Quentin had made it into the police force. Their relationship had been rocky by the end, but the accident was what had pushed it over the line and they had divorced a year later.

Oliver had found it hard to keep the smile and laughter out of his voice when the older man had told him about the house he had moved into after the divorce—how he had gone with a smaller two bedroom place with a large back yard which had quickly become one big vegetable garden he currently shared with his two cats—a so not to be lonely present from Lucas—a black one named Morgan and a white one named Hrothbert (Bob for short).

"You're dressed already?" Thea's voice echoed from the doorway. He shot a glare in her direction before hiding his face back into his pillow.

"Wow, I have never seen you this nervous before having someone home for dinner," his sister chuckled before sitting on the end of his bed and crossing her legs. Sighing softly to himself, Oliver flipped onto his back to look at his sister.

"Mum's nervous, too," Thea continued before Oliver could say a word. "I think she is afraid she might say or do something that will screw this up for you."

"If anyone is going to screw this up it will be me," Oliver chuckled as he sat up and leaned against the headboard.

"Can I ask a question…?"

"…"

"What started all this…? I mean when did you decide that you wanted to date Quentin or that you even liked him that way?" Thea continued leaning forward, smiling as her brother blushed.

"Well, dating when I learnt that he was divorced, although I never thought that would happen… The crush started when I was 8."   
Oliver smiled slightly as he watched his sister's mouth drop.

"…Eight… how did it happen?" Thea continued shaking off her shock, moving from her spot at the end of the bed to sit next to her brother. Smiling widely, Oliver stood up before walking over to open one of the drawers in his desk. Returning to the bed with two photos in hand, he handed the first to his sister.

A much younger—8 years old to be exact—Oliver smiled back at her, Tommy and Laurel standing either side of him; the three were dressed in bathers and stood in the middle of the crowded beach; off to the side of the photo sat a much younger Quentin and Sarah.

"Oh wow," Thea breathed out as she stared at the photo. "How old was Quentin here?"

"Well we were eight at the time, which means that Sarah was six, so Quentin would have been about 29 at the time."

"Same age you are now," Thea nodded, looking back at the photo. "That would make him about 50 now."

"51 this year," Oliver nodded, looking down at the photo.

"So this is where the crush started," Thea prompted, breaking Oliver's staring contest with the photo.

"A little before, but this is where I admitted to myself that I liked him. The whole family was going down to the beach for the day and Dinah had told Laurel that she could bring some friends as well, so she invited myself and Tommy to go with them. This was taken when we first got to the beach by Dinah. It was perfect beach weather that day—the sun was out, the water was perfect. The only problem was that I didn't know how to swim," Oliver paused to catch his sister's reaction before continuing.

"Of course, I hadn't told any of the others that I couldn't swim; Tommy had bragged about how easy it was, so I just figured I could wing it… I was doing pretty well, too, until this big wave came along…I was so scared the wave pushed me right under and flipped me; I didn't know which way was up and which was down. Just when I didn't think I could hold my breath any longer, he grabbed me and pulled me to the surface and straight into his arms." Oliver paused looking down at the second photo before handing it to Thea.

In the photo Quentin was walking thigh high in water towards the beach in only a pair of green board shorts, a look of panic on his face as he carried her brother who appeared to be clinging to the older man. The young boy in the photo had his arms wrapped around the policeman's neck with his head tucked under the man's chin and his legs wrapped tightly around his torso.  
"He carried me back up to the beach, kept telling me that everything was going to be ok and when I finally calmed down enough to tell him I didn't know how to swim he smiled and spent the rest of the afternoon teaching me the basics…He was so kind and patient about the whole thing and after he dropped me home he had a word with mum and dad about getting me swimming lessons."

"So that's how it started," Thea sighed. "You have been nursing a crush on the same man for over 20 years; you realise that's longer than a lot of marriages?" a smirk covering her face, the other blushed.

\---------à-----------à---------à---------à---------à-----------à----------à---------à-----------à   
Detective Lance sat in his car for a moment staring up at the mansion; leaning back into his seat, he let out a breath he hadn't realised he was holding.

"Get a grip Lance, it's just dinner… Just be polite—that means no sarcasm and no snide comments… God, I am going to screw this up." Taking one last breath, Quentin stepped out of his car and made his way to the front door. Ringing the doorbell, the man looked back at his car, wondering if he could make a break for it before someone answered the door.

"No need to look so nervous Quentin," Walter's voice snapped him out of his thoughts, causing him to jump.

"Sorry," he muttered before wincing. 'You catch criminals for a living! GET A GRIP!' 

"Come in, would you like a glass of wine?"

"That would be fantastic."  
\--------------à------------à-------------à-------------à------------à------------------à-------------à  
"So Quentin, Oliver tells me you grew up in England and Germany?" Moira questioned an hour later, once they were seated at the table enjoying the first course of their meal.

"Yeah, I was born and grew up in Wellington and spent my holidays in Dresden."

"It must have been interesting moving between the different countries," Walter prompted from the head of the table. To his right sat Moira and Thea, who were both smiling at him from the other side of the table; Oliver sat by his side keeping up a steady game of footsie, which Quentin suspected Thea knew about.

"It was hard in the beginning; none of mum's older relatives spoke English, so until my German improved it made communication quite hard, but after that I always looked forward to spending time in Germany."

"You don't have much of an accent," Thea pointed out from across the table.

"No, by the time I finished high school here I had pretty much lost it, much to my parents' annoyance, but according to Lucas and half the precinct it comes back when I am tired or have been drinking too much."

"I will have to remember that," Oliver smiled at him from his side. The older man shot him an annoyed look before returning to his meal. Despite the original concerns about the evening, Quentin was actually really enjoying himself; the whole family was making him feel welcome and it was a lot easier to be nice when he wasn't there arresting their son.

"When did you decide you wanted to become a cop?" Moira asked as if she knew what he was thinking.

"Decided when I was ten; I just didn't know which country I would serve."

"Do you like being a cop?" Thea questioned, staring at her brother as she asked.

"Yeah I like it… I mean it has its good, bad and very bad days, but on a whole I wouldn't give it up," Quentin leaned back slightly as the second course was placed in front of him.

"What would you consider a very bad day?" Walter questioned, lifting the fork to his mouth.

"Any day I end up in an ambulance or hospital," Quentin replied, noting the way Oliver stiffened at his response.

"Has that happened before?" Oliver questioned, reaching under the table to place a hand on the older man's thigh.

"A few times yeah," Quentin replied, looking uncomfortable.

"More wine, Quentin?" Walter offered, putting an end to the topic.  
\-------------à----------à----------à----------à----------à----------à---------à---------à  
"That was a lot of fun," Quentin spoke up as Oliver walked him to his car.

"I have to admit mum behaved a lot better than I thought she would," Oliver linked his fingers with Quentin's. The two shared a smile as they stopped by the older's car. Smirking, Oliver brought their entwined fingers up to his lips and placed a soft kiss on the other's knuckles, admiring the blush that covered Quentin's face and neck.

Tugging gently on the hand, Oliver moved closer, placing his free hand on Quentin's hip at the same time Quentin's free hand moved to his shoulder as they met in a soft kiss. Oliver smiled into the kiss as Quentin tugged his hand free so that he could run his fingers through Oliver's hair before stopping at the nape of his neck.

Oliver shifted slightly, allowing himself to back the older man into the side of the car as they deepened the kiss, tongues brushing up against each other. Settling his weight against the older man, Oliver ran his thumb over the smooth skin located just under his shirt, causing the older man to shiver before pulling him closer, effectively pinning himself to the car.  
Breaking the kiss, Oliver let out a long breath as he rested his forehead against the other.

"This seems vaguely familiar," Oliver chuckled, leaning forward to nibble on the other's bottom lip. Quentin moaned into the touch, the fuzzy memory of the Hood pinning him to the hood of his car to deliver evidence danced across his vision. The two remained up against the car gently swapping kisses, Oliver's thumbs moving in small circles on Quentin's hips as the older man's fingernails traced patterns into the back of his head.

"We're being watched," Quentin whispered, leaning forward for another kiss.

"I know," Oliver moaned into the kiss, allowing himself to linger for a moment before stepping away smiling. As the older man pouted at the loss of contact, Oliver moved, silently opening the front door of the car.

"Goodnight, Quentin."

"Night Oliver," Quentin breathed out, stealing another kiss before getting into his car and driving off.  
\-------------------à------------à---------------à------------à--------------à-------------à-------------  
Next chapter up really soon


	6. Chapter 6

Author's note: Hello people, taking a quick break from my other story while I decide on how to proceed with the next chapter  
Warning: Swearing and male/male  
Pairings: Oliver Queen/ Quentin Lance  
Disclaimers: The plot I guess that's really about it… What a shame.  
Thanks once again to Wtchcool for all the hard work   
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^   
\----------------- ---------------- -------------- --------------------------------- ----------------------------  
Oliver's stomach clenched violently as his eyes shot open, waking him from his sleep. Moaning loudly, the vigilante struggled against the blankets—only slightly aware that his movements were disturbing the other person in the bed. Getting to his feet, he froze as another wave of nausea overcame him; taking a deep breath, Oliver realized his mistake as his stomach lurched again, this time accompanied by a painful throb to the side of his head.

A warm and steady hand on his shoulder nudged him forward, guiding him out of the bedroom and into the adjoining bathroom where he threw himself in front of the toilet to empty the mostly liquid contents of his stomach. The burning in his throat did little to stop the now persistent headache, which was causing his eyes to water.

The warm hand reappeared on his back as Oliver turned his head slightly to observe a tired looking Quentin sitting behind him, a glass of water in one hand.

"Here drink slowly," Quentin spoke softly as he handed over the water.

"How did I get here?" Oliver questioned in between sips of water.

"You were dropped off by a very amused taxi driver… I am pretty sure you were the highlight of his night, particularly after you made him take a $500 tip."

Oliver nodded, moving away from the toilet to sit up against the bathroom wall. Leaning his head back, he allowed himself to relax for a moment, smiling slightly when he felt Quentin move to sit beside him.

"Can I ask how you got your black eye?" Quentin whispered, entwining their fingers together. Oliver stared down at their hands for a moment before looking the man in the eye.

"Tommy punched me." A brief squeeze of his hand encouraged him to continue.

"I went out onto the balcony at Amnesia to get some air after drinking way too much and Laurel followed me out… She was pretty drunk, too, and she tried to kiss me. When I told her I wasn't interested, she told me that all I had to do was say the word and she would leave Tommy and we could be together again…I told her no, but she kissed me and that's when Tommy walked out and…" Oliver left off as he gestured to his face, wincing when Quentin moved forward to touch the mark.

"Are you mad?"

Smiling softly, Quentin kissed the growing bruise before resting his forehead against Oliver's. "No, I am not mad at you; thank you for telling me." Getting to his feet, Quentin tugged at Oliver's hand until the younger followed before handing him an extra toothbrush.

"It's about 5 a.m. now; clean your teeth and we can try to get a few more hours of sleep." Oliver nodded before wincing when he caught sight of his reflection in the mirror; dragging his eyes away, he noted that he was no longer in his suit, but instead dressed in an old t-shirt and a pair of pants that were too long for him.

Taking a couple of minutes to clean his teeth, Oliver moved back in to the bedroom, giving the room a once over before moving to climb back into bed next to his boyfriend.

"You know, this is not how I pictured our first night together," Oliver stated once Quentin had turned the bedside light off. Chuckling, Quentin moved until they were facing each other.

"I guess you will have to make it up to me," he responded with a yawn. Smiling into the darkness, Oliver moved forward, sliding one arm under Quentin's head and easing it onto his own shoulder, wrapping the other around his waist.

"It's a good start," Quentin mumbled sleepily.  
\--------------à----------à----------------à-----------------à----------------à---------------à---------  
Oliver had to hand it to Tommy, the guy really knew how to throw a party and by the looks of the room it appeared that the whole population of Starling City's young and beautiful was in attendance. Music that Oliver was only vaguely familiar with filled the room as he scanned the room for his best friend, having lost him earlier in the night along with his sister.

Shaking his head, Oliver headed upstairs to the balcony, looking for a reprieve from noise and heat. Stepping out onto the large outdoor area, Oliver enjoyed the cooler night air as it began to dispel some of the alcoholic haze that had set in a few hours before.

"Oliver, are you alright?" Laurel's voice emerged from behind.

"Yeah, fine, just needed some air," he replied, shifting slightly when she came to stand by his side.

"It's been a really nice night. I hope Tommy hasn't been pushing too many girls onto you."

"Eleven and counting," Oliver smiled, staring out over the city.

"Can I ask you a question?" Laurel whispered, breaking the silence.

"Ah…sure," Oliver turned his attention to her.

"Do you still love me?" Laurel whispered, placing her hand on his. "Because I still love you," she continued, leaning forward to kiss him; Oliver took a quick step back, shaking her hand off his as he did.

"No… I do love you, but not in the way you want me to; I don't have those feelings for you anymore," Oliver breathed out.

"I don't believe you; you told Tommy that you were seeing someone, but we all know that's not true… Is that the reason, is it Tommy? … Just say the world,Oliver, and I will end it with him and we can be together."

"No, that's not the reason. I don't have those feelings for you. I love someone else," Oliver snapped stepping back, wincing when his back came into contact with the railing.

"Please don't lie to me, Oliver," Laurel stepped forward again, to push up against him as she kissed him. Oliver froze for a moment, trapped against the railing with the only way out being to use force to push Laurel away.  
Breaking the kiss, Laurel looked up at him, hope shining in her eyes. Any response from Oliver was lost when he felt a sharp pain on the side of his head.

"TOMMY!" Laurel shrieked as Oliver steadied himself against the balcony, regaining his footing before lifting his eyes to meet the angry ones of his best friend.  
\----------à------------à-----------à-----------à-----------à-----------à----------à----------à  
Oliver winced as he lightly touched the bruise on the side of his face; he had thought it looked bad last night, but now it looked and felt ten times worse. That and in conjunction with what felt like the mother of all hangovers and Oliver was set to abandon all forms of alcohol for the rest of his life.

A warm hand rested against his forehead and Oliver didn't even try to hold back the moan as he leant into it.

"Five years of being completely sober on an island and you didn't even think to pace yourself last night," Quentin muttered, removing the plate with the half eaten toast from the table.

"Kill me," Oliver moaned, looking rather pitiful at the kitchen table.

"It's a hangover; you will be fine," Quentin smiled down at the younger man as he passed over some more pain killers.  
\----------à------------à----------à--------------à-------------------à----------à--------------à  
Thea sighed as Tommy pulled up into Quentin's driveway, giving her a confused look.

"So why did Oliver come here last night?" Tommy questioned, pulling off his seatbelt.

"It's not my place to tell you, but we are here because you need to apologise for last night and this is where he will be," Thea groaned, closing the door and making her way up the driveway, Tommy quickly following, a guilty look on his face.

Letting out a breath, Thea rang the doorbell hoping that her hunch was right and that Oliver had turned up here last night. Her suspicions were confirmed the moment Quentin opened the door and his attention immediately turned to Tommy, a pissed off look on his face. -Oh yeah, Ollie was definitely here.-

"Hey, can we come in? Tommy needs to talk with Ollie," Thea smiled as Quentin turned his attention to her. Nodding his head, he stepped back and gestured for the two to follow.

"He is outside," he continued as he led them through the small house and out into the rather large backyard to where Oliver sat at a table.

Silence filled the area as the two friends watched each other, neither knowing what to say or what to do,  
Thea and Quentin shared a look before the younger cleared her throat.

"Oh… um Thea told me what happened last night… She said that it wasn't you who kissed Laurel and that you told her you were not interested and tried to stop it… and that I may have overreacted."

"Overreacted?" Quentin began before breaking off and turning his attention to Thea.

"How exactly do you know what happened last night?"

"Oh I was… um …was up on the balcony as well," Thea gave a sheepish look.

"I didn't see you," Oliver looked questioningly at his younger sister.

"No, you wouldn't have, I was behind some potted plants…but that's not important, what is important is that Tommy knows what happened and he is here to apologise and make up," Thea finished, trying to turn the attention away from herself.  
"She is right… I shouldn't have reacted that way."

"It's fine, Tommy; I would have reacted the same way," Oliver stepped forward, noting that Quentin and Thea had disappeared back into the house.

"I am sorry, Tommy: I should have tried harder to keep her away, but I didn't want to hurt her," Oliver's shoulders slumped as he sat back down in his seat.

"Don't be," Tommy replied, taking the seat across from his best friend before continuing.

"I definitely overreacted… I was afraid when you first came back that you and Laurel would just pick back up where you left off and I would be left on my own… I hoped that what Laurel and I had was special, but I always had this thought in the back of my head that she would go back to you if she could… Turns out I was right."

"Tommy, come on man—you know I would never do that to you. How long have we known each other…?"

"I know; I just saw the two of you on the balcony and I panicked."

"Ok well, for future reference, I am no longer interested in Laurel and I don't intend to be for the foreseeable future," Oliver smiled and his best friend chuckled.

"Why did you come here last night...? I mean of all the places to go, you go to the house of your ex-girlfriend's father?" Tommy asked, sitting back. Oliverducked his head for a moment.

"You remember when I told you the other day that I was seeing someone?" Oliver's grin widened as realization dawned.  
"Oh…OH… you meant you and him… are?"

"Yeah, he and I are."

"Wow… WOW! … I never would have guessed…and Thea knows," Tommy continued, looking back at the house.

"Mum and Walter, too," Oliver nodded. "They kind of busted us on our first date."

"Laurel?" Tommy asked cautiously.

"No, not yet, that is going to be a difficult conversation."

"That is an understatement," Tommy muttered.  
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	7. Chapter 7

Author's note: Hello people, taking a quick break from my other story while I decide on how to proceed with the next chapter.

Warning: Swearing and male/male

Pairings: Oliver Queen/ Quentin Lance

Disclaimers: The plot I guess that's really about it… What a shame.

Thanks once again to Wtchcool for all the hard work.  
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^  
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Quentin glanced up at Laurel where she sat at the other side of the table pushing her food around her plate with her fork; they had been sitting in near silence since Laurel arrived almost twenty minutes ago. Since all his attempts to start a conversation had fallen on deaf ears, he had decided just to wait for her to come to him.

"I screwed up with Tommy." She started stabbing a piece of asparagus before putting her fork down. "You know how the other night we threw a party for Oliver?" she asked, looking up at him. Putting his own fork down, Quentin made sure to give his daughter his undivided attention, keeping his face neutral to try and cover up the queasy feeling in his stomach.

"I got drunk and I started thinking about what things were like before the accident, back when Oliver and I were still together, things got out of hand and I ended up kissing him and Tommy caught us."

"Did he kiss you back?" Quentin questioned, wanting to know both sides of the story.

"No… No, he didn't kiss me back. He told me… he told me… he told me he was in love with someone else," Laurel whispered, looking down at her plate, missing the blush that overtook her father's face.

"Tommy caught us and punched Oliver in the face…Now he won't talk to me."

"Tommy or Oliver?"

"Tommy, well, both… I tried to tell him it was just the alcohol, but he didn't listen. Not only have we broken up, but now he is also fighting with his best friend."

"Was it just the alcohol?" Quentin pushed, trying to keep out of cop mode, but failing.

"I don't know," she whispered, picking up her fork again and taking a bite out of her food. Quentin lowered his own eyes to his plate. As a father he wanted to tell Laurel that everything was going to be alright, that the man of her dreams would see the error of his ways and would come crawling back to her and she would get her happily ever after.

But another part wanted to fight back, wanted to shout that Oliver was not hers anymore and that she needed to back off. He had been given another chance to be happy and he wasn't going to give it up without a fight.

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Victor Sells was the newest up and coming mafia boss, having recently taken over from his father-in-law in the Gambino crime family. Victor had quickly made a name for himself in regards to the sheer amount of violence he and his people used to intimidate people and run his business. Victor was currently under investigation for his connection to thirty-five gruesome murders in Starling City, seven of which were cops.

Quentin frowned, biting down onto his lower lip as he stared down into the dead eyes of one of the most wanted men in the city. It wasn't the crime scene that bothered the detective—as far as crime scenes went this one didn't even come close to his top 50—it was the arrow sticking out of his chest that had his attention.

"Liver temperature put the time of death at about 30 minutes ago," ME Stacy Harding looked up at him briefly before turning back to the body. 'Makes sense; I only kissed him goodbye about an hour and a half ago.' Quentin sighed.

"I have to admit, if this Hood guy had to pick anyone to go after, he certainly picked the guy everyone wants dead," Stacy continued, standing up, her medical kit in hand. "It's a straightforward case here: cause of death is an arrow to the heart. I will open him up when the body gets delivered to the morgue, but this is very much what you see is what you get, and I doubt this guy will be strongly missed," she added before waving goodbye. Quentin took one last look at the body before turning to find Lucas… This was problematic.

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Oliver sighed as he stared at the computer screen, biting down on his lip as he watched Quentin move away from the body of his latest mark. Sighing, he tapped a few buttons that shut off the live recording. Turning away, he watched Felicity typing away at her computer. Her eyes lifted up to meet his before she blushed as her eyes dropped again.

"Why don't you finish up for the night Felicity? We have done our job for the night; you should go enjoy yourself for the rest of the evening," Oliver caught her eyeline again as she nodded, closing her laptop.

Slinging her laptop bag across her shoulder, she flattened her dress before looking at him again.

"Would you like to join me for a drink?" she smiled sweetly up at him, walking over to his side.

"I have other things to take care of tonight…rain check," Oliver waved her off with a smile as he took a step back.

"Oh… Oh, of course," she whispered, turning away slightly before turning back.

"I look forward to our rain check," she finished before smiling and vanishing into Verdant.

"Have you ever met a girl who didn't fall for you?" Diggle chuckled, looking up from the other end of the table.

"I am not interested," Oliver spoke up, keeping his tone neutral.

"Doesn't mean she isn't," Diggle replied, looking at the blank computer screen. "What are you going to do?"

"I have to go see him," Oliver muttered, going over to grab his wallet, keys and a familiar looking black book.

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Quentin sighed as he turned his car off. Stepping out, he made eye contact with Oliver, who was sitting on his front step looking nervous.

Without saying a word he opened the front door and stepped inside, leaving the door open for his boyfriend to enter behind him.

"Are you hungry?" Quentin questioned, walking over to the fridge and pulling out ingredients for a sandwich. Oliver nodded slightly and Lance grabbed extras from the fridge, moving over to the chopping board to make something for them both to eat. He was vaguely aware of Oliver moving behind him and slowly let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding until the other man wrapped his arms around his waist and pressed a soft kiss against his neck.

"I want to show you something," Oliver started leaning in to kiss his neck again. "I don't want any secrets between us."

The two stayed in the same position as Quentin finished off making their snack before leading them over to the kitchen table.

The older man watched carefully as Oliver placed a small black book on the table in front of him before sitting back and taking a hesitant bite out of his own sandwich.

Picking up the book, Quentin turned a few pages, noting the names written down and the lines that went through some of them. He paused, looking at a name partway down one page.

"Victor Sells," he read out loud, eyes snapping up to meet the other's.

"These names, are these are your targets? Whose writing is this?"

"My father's, it a list of people who are destroying Starling city through crime and corruption" Oliver added, leaning forward over the table.

Quentin didn't respond; he dropped his eyes down to the list, flipping through a few more pages before getting up and retrieving a pen from the kitchen counter. Keeping his face neutral, he sat back down, ignoring Oliver's concerned look. Flipping back through the book until he found the page he was looking for, he paused for a moment before crossing out a name.

"Malik's wife caught him in bed with his mistress, ended up taking a shotgun to the two of them… It was rather messy," Quentin spoke up, not looking up from the paper; turning the page he crossed out another name. "Andrews was killed in prison, apparently he insulted the wrong person and got stabbed 25 times in the shower for his trouble."

"Quentin," Oliver whispered, leaning over to take the pen out of his hand before tugging at his arm. Silently sliding from his seat, Quentin let himself be led around the table till he was sitting in Oliver's lap, the strong arms holding him in place.

"You know I can't condone this…" Quentin whispered, placing a finger over Oliver's lips to stop his from speaking. "But thank you for telling me… for trusting me with this." Oliver nodded, kissing the finger slightly, smiling when Quentin smiled back at him.

"We're good," he added, answering the unasked question, fingers moving into the younger's hair and he leaned down for a kiss, enjoying the feeling of being safe, secure and loved in his boyfriend's arms. This was definitely worth fighting for.

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Next chapter Up soon. I do realize that Quentin is not a sarcastic and snarky as he should be but i plan on improving on that next chapter


	8. Chapter 8

Author's note: Hello people, taking a quick break from my other story while I decide on how to proceed with the next chapter.  
Warning: Swearing and male/male  
Pairings: Oliver Queen/ Quentin Lance  
Disclaimers: The plot I guess that's really about it… What a shame.  
Thanks once again to Wtchcool for all the hard work and for putting up with me.  
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^  
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Oliver bit his lip as he stared at the task in front of him; sure, he had done this before, but he didn't remember it being this hard. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath before opening them again… still too many choices. A giggle to his left revealed a group of teenage girls who smiled at him as they passed whispering how hot he was and wondering if he was single. Picking lubricant shouldn't be this hard, Oliver thought looking back at the supermarket shelves. Glaring at the shelves, Oliver reached out and picked up the closest bottle, turning it over in his hand before he then put it back.

The sexual tension between him and Quentin had grown rapidly since the night Oliver had shown Quentin the black book; without any secrets between the two a new level of trust had formed and Oliver felt that the invisible barrier that had been holding them back had vanished. After a few very heavy make-out sessions, Oliver had decided he would rather be prepared as, at this rate, they were likely to rip each other's clothing off any day now.

Unfortunately this new level of tension had also been noticed by everyone around them. Oliver wasn't sure what was worse, the outright questions from Tommy, Thea and Diggle about his sex life or the subtle looks and smile from his mother whenever she saw them together and, if the snarl Quentin had given Lucas last time they all saw each other was any indication, the other man was also giving his boyfriend a hard time.

Finally deciding on a bottle, he turned to the condoms sitting on the next shelf. Biting his lip again, Oliver tossed up his choices; after the island he had been tested for everything- at his mother's insistence- so he knew he was clean and the idea of their first time together being without a condom was, well, just hot, but he didn't want to do anything to make Quentin uncomfortable. Grabbing a box that promised a snug fit, Oliver took his purchases to the counter and tried to ignore the way the checkout chick batted her eyes at him as she scanned his purchases.

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Quentin sighed as he sat back in the passenger seat of the squad car—as much as he loved being a cop, stakeouts were not his idea of fun… particularly on a Friday night when he had a hot boyfriend he could be spending time with… -Well should be spending time with; said boyfriend was currently having dinner with his daughter-

"It will be fine," Lucas broke the silence, glancing at his partner; Quentin sighed again, closing his eyes. In a show of good faith, Oliver invited Laurel over to dinner with the family as a way of showing no hard feelings for the recent turn of events.

Laurel had jumped at the chance to make things up with Oliver and had gladly accepted the invitation. Quentin understood the reason Oliver had decided to invite her over for dinner, but that didn't make him any less nervous. 'What if she tries something again…what if it works?'

Shaking his head, Quentin scanned the nearby building. Victor Sells may be dead, but that didn't mean that the rest of his people were going away anytime soon. The remaining group members had started causing trouble again and this stakeout was the latest effort to find out what the group was up to.

Hearing a beep from his mobile phone, Quentin reached for the center console, raising an eyebrow when the screen read new picture message. Flipping his phone open, he felt his eyes widen as his face began to redden as he looked at the image. A half-naked Oliver stared up at him, clad in only a pair of tight jeans with the top button undone. The lighting in the background was perfect at showing off the fine detail of every muscle in his shoulder and torso. The picture's caption caught his attention next: 'Nothing to wear'. – Dear god, is he trying to kill me?-

A whistle to his side quickly reminded him that he was not alone in the car as he jerked the phone against his chest.

"Wow… that's all I can say… Wow." The two sat silently for a moment before a grin spread itself over Lucas's face.

"Let me see that again."

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Laurel smoothed her hand down her dress, taking a moment to make sure everything was perfect before ringing the doorbell. She only had a few moments to wait before Thea answered the door, giving her a welcoming smile as she entered.

"How have you been, Thea?" Laurel returned the smile, giving the younger girl a hug.

"Very well, thank you for asking… and yourself, how have you been handling everything?"

"It's been tough, but work has been keeping me busy, so at least that keeps my mind occupied," she sighed.

"Just remember not to work too much," Oliver spoke up as he walked down the stairs dressed nicely in a pair of dark coloured jeans and shirt. Laurel smiled as Oliver moved in for a hug before watching as he put a bit of distance between the two.

"That's what my dad always tells me and, when he listens to his own advice, then I will take it into consideration," Laurel joked back, noting the way Oliver's lips twitched at the mention of her father.

"Laurel dear, it's good to see you again," Moira appeared in the doorway giving her a hug before leading her into the dining room, "please come inside and have a drink."

The dining room was as immaculate as always, the best china and silver-wear covered the table ready to be used for this evening's meal; taking a seat in what she considered her normal spot, Laurel felt at ease as the other members of the family sat with her. It felt like old times –Only this isn't old times…everything is different now. –

"So Laurel, how's work going?" Walter spoke up midway through the main course.

"Work has been very busy recently, which is good, keeps me on my toes. I am looking forward to going away in a few weeks to have a bit of a break."

"Are you going anywhere exciting?" Thea smiled as she topped up Laurel's wine glass.

"Nowhere exciting; I am actually going over to visit my mum for a week since she has some time off as well."

"How is your mother doing? It's been a long time since I have seen her," Moira leaned forward looking interested.

"She is good; actually she has applied to be transferred back to Starling City. She says she misses the city, but I know that she misses my dad, too," she continued, missing the way Oliver's jaw tightened and his eyes darkened.

"Does your dad know that she is planning to come back?" Moira pushed, trying to keep sounding interested.

"No," Laurel stated, frowning. "To be honest his reaction could go either way, the divorce was particularly harsh on my dad considering the circumstances, but he held it together, got his new place, kept working."

"What circumstances were those?" Oliver questioned; Laurel found herself pausing at the tone- he almost sounds angry-

'Oh, well shortly after the boat accident my dad had closed a particularly nasty case involving the mafia; he had stopped by the supermarket on the way home and as he was leaving a van drove past and he was shot nine times across his shoulders and chest," Laurel paused for a moment as she made a motion across her chest.

"Lucas was sitting in the car waiting and saw the whole thing; he got to my dad as the van drove off and called for an ambulance. Of the nine shots, three hit his lungs and one nicked his heart… The doctors told us that it was a miracle he didn't die; even though his heart stopped during surgery, he didn't give up and pulled through. They kept him in a coma for a week; when he woke up, mum handed him the divorce papers, saying she couldn't do it anymore."

"That Bitch!" Thea snapped, pulling Laurel's attention away from the furious look which was consuming Oliver's face.

"THEA!" Moira snapped.

"No, she is right," Laurel held up a hand. "It was a terrible…horrible move on her part, I wouldn't have been surprised if dad never spoke to her again, but he is polite the times they do speak. I think mum is hoping that the past will be in the past and that they can move on," Laurel finished, looking down at her now empty plate before glancing at Oliver—his face darker than she had ever seen it.

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Quentin sighed as he looked around the building he had previously been watching. Having made the decision to call in back up and storm the building and having made a few arrests along the way, Quentin found himself shifting through the many papers and notebooks that filled the room until something caught his eye.

An out of place notebook sat on the edge of a desk, something that would have been overlooked by almost everyone else. Flipping through the pages, Quentin paused on a page filled with the details of an elaborate kidnapping and ransom plot complete with targets. Scanning the page, Quentin felt his blood run cold as he settled on one name: Thea Queen.  
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Hope you all enjoyed this chapter


	9. Chapter 9

Author's note: Hello people, taking a quick break from my other story while I decide on how to proceed with the next chapter.  
Warning: Swearing and male/male  
Pairings: Oliver Queen/ Quentin Lance  
Disclaimers: The plot I guess that's really about it… What a shame.  
Thanks once again to Wtchcool for all the hard work.  
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^  
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Laurel smiled over at Thea as the younger girl continued her story about a group of drunk school friends at a recent party. To her side Oliver chuckled, shaking his head, in a considerably better mood than he had been in earlier in the meal; glancing down at her dessert, she felt her smile widen. Tonight had been just like old times, 'perhaps after everything with Tommy is worked out… Oliver and I can talk about a possible future.'

The doorbell chime broke Laurel from her thoughts and she watched as Walter excused himself for a moment.

"Who was at…" Moira started, but broke off as Walter reappeared closely followed by her dad and Lucas.

"Dad? What are you doing here…aren't you working?" Laurel questioned, looking around the room, her confusion growing when she caught the small smile on Oliver's face as he looked at her dad.

"Yeah, I am working… um something has come up in an investigation and we just need a few words with Thea," Quentin started glancing at the youngest member of the family.

"You're not in trouble, Thea, we just need you to look at some photos and let us know if you recognize anyone," Lucas continued pulling his phone out of his back pocket.

"Can I ask what this is about?" Moira asked, getting up to stand behind Thea. The room watched as Lucas and her dad shared a look before her dad sighed and looked back at the family.

"As I am sure you're aware, Victor Sells died recently after his short time as head of the Gambino crime family. Now before Victor took over, we received Intel from an undercover cop that something big was going to go down. Something that was very hush hush, but was rumored that if pulled off it would put the family on the maps as one of the greatest mafia families in the world." Quentin paused for a moment and gestured for Moira to take a seat.

"When Victor took over as the head of the family the plan wasn't aborted, but it was delayed as there were some aspects that he thought needed to be fixed. Other members of the family disagreed… strongly, but as long as Victor was calling the shots, we had more time to figure out this big plan."

"And now he is dead; it was this Arrow vigilante who killed him, wasn't it?" Walter asked, placing his hand on Moira's.

"Yes, that's right; whoever has taken over the family now has started to put the plan in motion. We suspected this would happen sooner rather than later, so tonight a team was organised and we watched one of the new buildings they have set up in. When we went in we discovered enough documents that we have a good idea what the plan is."

"What does this have to do with me?" Thea spoke up.

"The plan or at least the start of it is a large kidnapping and ransom plot. In the search of the building I found a notebook with a list of names." Quentin paused to pull a piece of paper from his jacket pocket before handing it over to Thea.

"I am sure you would recognize some of the names on the list, they are all around your age and come from well off families."

"Yeah… I go to school with a lot of them," Thea scanned the names, glancing up as Lucas handed over his mobile phone.

"Do you recognize any of these people?" Lucas stepped back sharing a look with Quentin for a moment before waiting silently as Thea flicked through the photos.

"This one here," she paused showing the image of a young heavily tattooed woman. "I have seen her and another man; they were standing outside of the school last week taking photos."

"Why didn't you mention anything before?" Moira asked looking shocked.

"I didn't think about it at the time, just that it was creepy."

"What happens now?" Laurel spoke up looking worried.

"The woman's in custody; we arrested her along with the other people in the photos tonight… they are mostly midlevels in the mob hierarchy; they do a lot of the dirty work. Unfortunately, we have only taken out a small percentage of the manpower they have; police have been sent to the homes of the other people on the list," Lucas began taking his phone back and putting it in his pocket.

"For tonight at least, Lucas and I will be remaining here to keep an eye on things; tomorrow we can look at either protective relocation or perhaps a bodyguard until the threat has passed," Quentin continued his eye contact with Moira as the mother nodded her head in agreement.  
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Quentin looked over the mini command center he and Lucas had set up in the Queens' living room. It took a bit of work, but they were able to set up enough computer screens that they were then able to connect to all of the security cameras on the property. Having a complete view of every angle of the property was going to be important, especially considering how large the property was.

Rubbing his eyes, Quentin stood up and walked over to the large window that overlooked the pool and the backyard.

"You ok?" Lucas spoke up.

"I'm fine."

"I am sure Oliver thinks so, but are you ok?" Lucas chuckled as Quentin flipped him the bird and walked back over to the dining room table.

"Yeah, I am ok; this is kind of like a horrible soap opera."

"What, standing in your younger boyfriend's family home? Protecting his younger sister who is upstairs along with said boyfriend, their parents and your daughter who still has the hots for your boyfriend? You're right; this could be a major plotline in the next season of Days of Our Lives."

"If that's the case it's your turn to get shot, I have had enough bullets pulled out of me," Quentin rolled his eyes as he sunk into one of the dining room chairs.

"I would prefer it if neither of you got shot," Oliver spoke up, walking into the room wearing pajama pants and a tight white t-shirt. Quentin sucked in a breath as his eyes drifted across the younger man's chest, taking in the view of the muscles underneath the mostly transparent t-shirt.

"I am going to check the perimeter," Lucas chuckled as he walked passed Quentin giving him a smug look as he left.

"It's 3:40 in the morning; you should be asleep," Quentin spoke up, pulling his eyes up to look at Oliver's face, trying to ignore the heat pooling in his stomach.

"Can't sleep," the other said moving forward to stand next to the detective.

"I can't help but think that this is all my fault," he continued.

"You can't think like that, Oliver. It's not your fault," Quentin squashed down any and all forms of arousal as he bumped his shoulder against Oliver's, trying to offer some kind of comfort.

"If I hadn't killed him…"

"If anyone had it coming it was him," Quentin moved to stand in front of Oliver cupping his face with both his hands and making sure the younger man was looking at him.

"I don't blame you and you should not blame yourself, ok? We will figure this out." Nodding, Oliver tilted his forehead forward until it was resting against Quentin's own. The two stood still for a few moments until a smirk appeared on the older man's face.

"That top is very distracting by the way," Quentin felt rather than saw the smile cover Oliver's face.

"Yeah, you like it? If it's so distracting I can always take it off," Oliver purred his hand coming to rest on Quentin's hips.

"This is neither the time nor the place Ollie," Quentin whispered back leaning in so that the two men were pushing up against each other; the sound of footsteps caused the two to pull apart.

"Quentin," Lucas breathed out looking concerned. "We have company and lots of it."  
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